Wish you were here

Saturday, April 12, 2008

QUIAPO AND THE GOLDEN AGE OF FILIPINO MOVIES

This is the facade of Life Theater on Quezon Boulevard in Quiapo, which was owned by Remy Villongco and located only a few meters from the Quiapo Church.

During the golden age of the local film industry, beginning after the Second World War, this theater was one of the two that the association of movie producers agreed on sharing -- on a rotating basis, ten days for each movie studio -- to showcase its new film.

The studios that ruled the land at that time were Premiere Productions, LVN Pictures, and Sampaguita Pictures. There was also a fourth one, Libran, but its sophisticated fare with obvious foreign bent failed to capture the interest of the general public. It eventually ceased its operation.

The smaller Dalisay Theater on Avenida Rizal was used by the studios for minor releases, while the larger and air-conditioned Life Theater hosted the blockbuster releases and their glitzy premieres. At these affairs, the local female leads emulated their Hollywood counterparts; projecting incredibly elegant movie star personas with wardrobes designed by just as equally famous local couturiers.

If the current television shows -- such as Pinoy Big Brother and the Dream Academy -- are today's leading dream factories, back during that era, it was Sampaguita Pictures under the helm of Dr. Jose Perez that produced the country's most popular silver screen idols. His female stars were always dressed by Ramon Valera and the supporting stars by Pitoy Moreno, who was reportedly discovered by him. As for the upcoming starlets, it was Christian Espiritu who was delegated by Dr. Perez to design their glamorous gowns.

At premieres, the stars would arrive in the air-conditioned Sampaguita Pictures bus and alight in front of the Life Theater in the midst of blinding klieg lights and deafening cheers of adoring fans, most of whom arrived hours beforehand just to get a glimpse of their favorite stars. Everyone would scream deliriously at the sight of these movie stars with stiff regal hairdos, theatrical make-up, and double-layered eyelashes created by renowned stylists such as Moises Sic, Benny Baluyot, Freddy Marasigan, and D' Fernando.

And if the newly-released movies shown at Life and Dalisay proved to be box office hits, "move-over engagements," as they were called back then, were immediately arranged at the nearby Times or Boulevard theaters. For additional mileage, there were the double bill features at Illusion and Inday theaters.

The bakya crowd was and has always been the largest block of supporters of these Tagalog films; hence, the economic force behind every successful locally-produced movie. However, by the beginning of the martial law period, the three major studios eventually lost their foothold in the local movie-making business. It was a time when independent producers started churning out low-budget bomba films that became popular due to their steamy sex scenes. Shortly thereafter, the Golden Age of Filipino Movies began to see its moribund turn.

As for the movie theater business, the extensive delay in the construction of the LRT made downtown Avenida Rizal inhospitable to its regular patrons; hence, many opted to stay away from the area. In addition, the newly-opened air-conditioned malls replete with movie complexes in the outlying metropolitan areas, began to attract the masses. Consequently, these factors, including the subsequent proliferation of cheap pirated DVDs, produced an extensive decline in the revenues of many Manila theaters.

Exasperated with dwindling ticket sales and rising operating costs, Life Theater was among those unable to justify remaining in business. Thus, it eventually closed its doors for good.

Source:Quiapo: Heart of Manilaedited by Fernando Nakpil Zialcita

Recent photo of Times Theater in Quiapo which is still in business.Click here to view a vintage photograph of it.

1. King's - now a small mall (tiangge) with restaurant).2. Rex Theater - converted to President Restaurant (see old photo)

Along Escolta:

1. Capitol - only the facade remains2. Lyric - demolished

Along Florentino Torres:

1. De Luxe - demolished2. Republic - demolished

Along Quezon Boulevard, Evangelista Street and other parts of Quiapo:

1. New Love - still standing but closed2. Cinerama (now Isetann with multiplex theaters on fifth floor)3. Gala - now a beer/strip bar4. Crown - still standing but closed5. Lider (Ginto) - still operational6. Globe - now a small mall (tiangge) but Globe Lumpia House still open7. Life - designed by Pablo Antonio - still standing but closed8. Boulevard - gone9. Times - designed by Luis Araneta - operational10. Main - designed by Juan Nakpil still standing - now used by Dating Daan organization11. Palace - gone12. Mayfair - gone13. Savoy - gone14. Radio - gone

23 Comments:

Until you came up with this list, I did not realize that a lot of those theaters are now gone. It's a big loss for future generations. In addition, we do not have a lot of very good and extensive documentation about each of those theaters you listed. That is very sad for each one of those theaters had a story to tell.

For a poor country, we waste a lot of our resources. I'm not saying that all of them should have been saved. I just feel that depending on the area, some of those buildings could have been put to some other use other than simple demolition.

It is really sad that we lack the much needed documentations of these structures. Would you believe that in some areas of Metro Manila, taking pictures of structures are not allowed. Reason: they want you to pay for a permit before doing so.

Hi Senor Enrique! I'm a frequent visitor of your wonderful site. This is the first time I'll be posting a comment. Being a movie fan, it really breaks my heart seeing these dilapidated movie houses. It's a pitiful sight! Hope the local government can do something about this--- at least to preserve the architectural designs of these establishments. Hope you can visit my site at www.video48.blogpot.com.Thanks, Simon

That's one great site you have, Simon! Every Pinoy local movie fan ought to be visiting your site :)

Many thanks for visiting my site and for finally making your presence known. I've just linked your site to this entry.

By the way, I've got to read your entry on Max Alvarado. When I was a kid, I'd fight over with some of my older brothers who would be Max Alvarado, Martin Marfil, or Vino Garcia whenever we wanted to be the bad guys in the cop and robber role-playing games we used to play.

your list of historic movie theaters is a great research material for cineastes, Eric!

When i was a student at the university i would take up extra subjects on cinema (which was purely for my own interest and not required in my syllabus/course at all). It was all worth it. One of my professors was Virgie Moreno and she opened my eyes to the intensity and passion of moviemakers her and abroad. We also saw footages of Filipino films made during the Japanese occupation here in the Philippines. These movie theaters that you showed in your list could be seen in one film where the cameraman rode on a military tank with a Japanese soldier as they coasted along the main Quiapo road. I could just imagine those bulky cameras being hoisted up!

Yep, those were the days when you'd have to dress up and go to the movies.

I wish these remaining historic cinemas be preserved. Reminds me of the movie "Cinema Paradiso" where the quiant Italian town moviehouse died along with the aging of its projectionist.

I grew up in era in which the movie industry -- both local and foreign -- provided the major source of awe and wonder, Bernadette. Television, at that time, was not as prolific with its programming as it is now.

Avenida Rizal was also a stunning sight -- from the early evenings on -- when the movie theaters' glorious neon lights would lit up the entire stretch of the avenue. It was a wonderful period, indeed!

Yes, Cinema Paradiso has become a classic film; reflecting a universal phenomenon -- the demise of standalone movie theaters.

I just learned about that old Rex theater which is now President Restaurant in Ongpin. When we used to eat there, parati namin pinaguusapan na dati itong siehan, pero walang nakakaalam ng pangalan. :DUntil a discussion in Skysrapercity forum about some old photos of (Bubbas_girl) taken during WWII.I have been to most of those moviehouses, but Universal theater is very memorable to our family. Kumpare ng tatay ko kasi ang may-ari at kapitbahay namin.... hehehe, parati kaming libre, pati mga kaeskuwla namin.

hi, we searched for the President restaurant along Ongpin yesterday and an old resident told us that it was the former Oriole theater. in your blog it is REX THEATRE..im confused now... i need this for my thesis hope you can help me..

thanks for the updated list..it is a bif help for me and my group as we are still searching for old cinemas here in manila...

i came across ur site a while back and got impressed w/ ur b&w photos so i saved ur url as a fave. today i had more time....now am realizing, am slowly getting "hooked" by wishuwerehere....even the title has a melancholic sentimental element that is hard to ignore. but really, nice pix. i like the stories behind it too. is it ok to copy (personal use only as wall paper perhaps)of some of ur pix. tanx.

Life in Manila as observed by a former New Yorker who with a laptop and camera has reinvented himself as a storyteller. Winner of the PHILIPPINE BLOG AWARDS: Best Photo Blog in 2007 and three Best Single Post awards in 2008.